December 12th, 2012
Innovation
by Tom Loveland
Cyber War
Cybersecurity isn’t a line item or a project—it’s an Information Age imperative. Sophisticated digital defense aims to match the human body, with hardware and software doing digitally what biology does chemically—sorting the pernicious from the beneficial, while keeping systems running at light speed.
Dr. Phyllis Schneck is the Global Public Sector CTO of anti-virus titan McAfee, which is now a part of Intel. Schneck was named the 2012 Lattanze Executive of the Year by Loyola University’s Sellinger School of Business—an honor that recognizes her efforts to both probe and prop up our nation’s Internet security.
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November 14th, 2012
Cloud IT Strategy
by Tom Loveland
How Salesforce.com Blazed a New Trail
Technology enables change, and change drives success. We measure success in terms of change: increases, decreases, percentages, growth and trends.
But how do we define change? Transformation? Innovation? Conversion? Shift? Transition?
Powerful data mining systems transform boring data into hidden treasures. Innovative data manipulation programs convert stagnant business relationships into rich prospect lists. And new computing platforms have shifted the technology paradigm from one of monolithic information systems living in giant metal boxes to well-connected business processes that float around in the cloud.
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November 6th, 2012
IT Strategy
by Rick Mosca
Without One, You Could Be Fighting a Losing Battle
Would a general go into battle without a defined plan? Never. Neither would he consider each operation individually. Rather, he would pursue tactics that link all of the battles together to meet a strategically defined goal of winning the war. It would be a plan against which he could measure success and clearly define return on manpower and capital investments.
Similarly, a CEO would not make an isolated decision to resolve a technology problem without looking at the organization as a whole. Much like an enemy attack, however, IT problems can strike without overt warning, crippling operations or revealing an exposed flank and forcing a quick response. What should we do when security systems are breached?
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November 1st, 2012
Data
by Tom Loveland
Where to Dig and What to Look For
Infotech research giant Gartner defines data mining as the process of discovering meaningful correlations, patterns and trends by sifting through large amounts of data stored in repositories.
In short: “There’s gold in them hills!”
We are in the middle of a data gold rush these days, because processing and storage enable us to crunch gigabytes of data in minutes, and the cost of doing it all keeps coming down. Thankfully, this isn’t the Old West, and you shouldn’t come across anyone trying to stake the same data claim you’re after. Read More
